The Life of a Demon Slayer
by ShadowDreamPhoenix
Summary: With the threat of demons always present, one group fights to keep them from overrunning our world. Follow one Demon Slayer as he faces new challenges and stronger Demons.
1. Chapter 1

"Excuse me, Sensei," said a voice off to the side.

Everyone turned to see another of the senseis standing in by the doorway.

"Dan, what can I do for you?" asked Tory.

"I have a new student for you," replied Dan stepping aside to reveal a student standing behind him. "His skill is ahead of everyone else in his class. The elders have decided to advance him a level."

"Is that so?" replied Tory. To the student he said, "Why don't you introducing yourself, young man."

"I'm Jesse," said the student with a bow.

"It's nice to meet you Jesse. Welcome to the class," said Tory with a smile. "I must admit that I'm curious as to why the elders decided to advance you."

"They said that my level of skill with weaponry was far ahead of any in my class," Jesse explained. "I seem to grasp the lessons better than everyone else and my sensei was the only one who could truly spar with me."

"It's been a while since anyone was advanced a level, hasn't it?" Tory asked Dan.

"It's been a few years easily," Dan replied.

"Well, since this group won't practice with weaponry until tomorrow, I'll just have to wait to see how skilled you are," Tory said. "Why don't we see how powerful you are with magic? Go stand over there."

As Jesse went to stand where Tory had indicated, Tory called over one of his students to stand by him. Dan had moved off to the side to watch.

"This is Cassandra," Tory told Jesse. "She is the strongest magic user in this class."

"Nice to meet you, Cassandra," Jesse said to her.

"Nice to meet you too," Cassandra replied.

"Cassandra I want you to use simple attacks, doesn't matter what element you use," Tory told her.

"Yes, Sensei."

"Jesse, I want you to simply defend yourself. Do not retaliate just yet, I want to see you defensive capabilities first. Understood?"

"Yes, Sensei."

"Good. Begin!"

Cassandra began by launching a fireball at Jesse. Jesse stopped the fireball with one hand and dispelled it. Next, Cassandra sent a storm of icicles at him. Jesse formed a simple shield around him in defense. Cassandra formed a large stream of water that she launched at him. Jesse caught it and held it swirling in a ring around him. A look of annoyance crossed Cassandra's face as she thought about her next attack. Cassandra began to gather the air around her into a ball before launching it at him. Jesse moved the water in front of him and froze it to form a wall.

"That's enough for now Cassandra," Tory called after a few more minutes. "Now, Jesse you may retaliate as you see fit and Cassandra I want you to use slightly stronger attacks, and feel free to mix them."

"Yes, Sensei," both Jesse and Cassandra replied.

As Cassandra started her next attack, she got a smirk on her face. Her first attack was to launch a lightning strike at Jesse. With one hand, Jesse redirected it. But instead of sending it back, he caught it with his other hand and seemed to dispel it. After taking breath, he stood straight and waited for Cassandra's next attack. He didn't have to wait long. Cassandra sent another fireball at him with two water attacks flanking it. Jesse caught the fireball and redirected it to cancel the two water attacks while sending a third back at her. Creating a wind current, Cassandra dissipated the fireball before it reached her. Cassandra, who was starting to get frustrated, raised half of an earth dome on either side of him and surrounded both him and the walls with icicles. With a quick movement of her arms, the walls closed in to trap him with the icicles embedding themselves into the rock and starting to drive deeper.

"Cassandra, stop!" Tory cried. "What have I told you about controlling your temper?!"

"I'm sorry," replied Cassandra as she bowed her head.

With a wave of his hand, Tory dispelled her attack and was surprised to see it empty. Everyone looked around but no one could see where Jesse had gone. Cassandra was hit from behind by a sudden blast of wind that sent her to her knees. As she landed, her hands and feet were trapped in an earth band that had a layer of ice to strengthen it. Before she really had a real grasp of what was going on, a dome of wind and fire started to swirl around her. To everyone's surprise, Jesse descended from above surrounded by a wind current that was holding him aloft.

"I've never seen anyone use magic like that," Tory commented as Jesse came down.

"I've never been exceptionally strong with magic," said Jesse. "But I've always come up with different ways of using it though. The elders think that my use of magic makes up for my lack of strength."

"How did you avoid my attack though?" asked Cassandra.

"It's easy to avoid something when everything around seems to move at a slower pace."

"What?"

"Yes, would you care to explain what you mean Jesse?" asked Tory.

"Sure, sensei. Instead of dispelling her lightning attack, I absorbed it and began channeling it through my body. Doing so, allows you to move faster."

"I don't remember being taught or reading about doing that with magic," replied Tory as he dispelled Jesse's various attacks around Cassandra. "Who taught you how to do that?"

"No one, I simply realized it was possible while practicing on my own one day."

"Did you notice any side effects from using magic in that way?"

"The only real effect is that you feel more exhausted when you dispel it."

"Interesting. I'm going to look more into this when I get a chance. For now, how about we end today's session. You are all dismissed until tomorrow. Meet at the weapons dojo at dawn."

"Yes, Sensei."

With that, the students went their separate ways.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning, Tory-Sensei waited as the student entered the dojo for weapons training. Seeing that all of them were there, he asked the last student that entered to close the door.

"Since you joined us yesterday, why don't we start with you Jesse," Tory said.

"Yes, Sensei," Jesse replied as he stepped forward.

"Take whatever weapon you feel comfortable with. And let's have Richard spar with you. He is the best with weaponry in this class."

Jesse chose a weapon resembling a basic katana while Richard chose one that looked like a broadsword. After choosing their weapons, both of them went to stand in the center of the dojo and prepared to face each other. Jesse was already thinking about the various ways he would attack and possibly defend. At Tory's command, the fight between them began. However, Jesse had his weapon at Richard's throat almost immediately. Everyone was stunned at how fast Jesse got past Richard's defense.

"I thought we couldn't use magic at all in the dojos?" one of the students asked.

"We can't, not even me. Remember, the dojos were constructed this way to prevent students from harming each other in frustration," Tory answered. "I can see why you were advanced based on weaponry Jesse."

After Jesse returned to his starting position, Richard prepared for a second round against him, this time taking a defensive stance. Again, Tory gave the command for them to begin. Just like the previous round, Jesse had a deathblow in only a few seconds. When Jesse and Richard returned to their starting positions, Jesse looked lost in thought.

"Sensei, would it be alright if I switched weapons?" Jesse asked after a few moments.

"That's fine," Tory replied with a confused look on his face.

Jesse went over the weapons rack and replaced the sword he was wielding before grabbing a staff. After swinging it a few times to check the weight of it, Jesse returned to his spot. Richard started to wonder how good Jesse was with a staff in hand versus a sword. He knew he was about to find out. Both of them took their stances and waited for Tory to give them their cue to begin. When Tory gave the command, they started their fight. Although it took a few more seconds, the end result was the same, with Jesse claiming what would be a deathblow.

"It seems that you're equally skilled with a sword or staff in hand, Jesse" Tory commented. "It also seems that the best in weaponry title goes to you. Richard you may return to your place in line."

"Yes, Sensei," Richard replied.

After replacing his weapon, Richard returned to his spot while Tory decided who would spar next. Tory decided to test Jesse against multiple opponents. This time Tory called Cassandra and Rachel forward.

"Jesse, you will be facing both of them" he explained as the girls chose their weapons. "Feel free to switch weapons again if you want."

Jesse waited until the girls were ready before taking his stance. When the girls took their stances, he could tell this wasn't the first time they had fought together as a team. Shifting into a more defensive position, Jesse waited for Tory to give the command. When he did, the girls attack simultaneously. Jesse reacted quickly enough to defend against all their attacks, but from the way they were attacking he didn't have a chance to retaliate. It wasn't long before Jesse saw his chance to retaliate. As he blocked an attack from Rachel, he was able to use the momentum to deflect Cassandra's attack and throw both of them off balance. In that instantance, Jesse landed a deathblow on both of them.

"I must say that I'm impressed, Jesse," Tory said.

"Thank you," Jesse replied.

"I want you to use a sword this time," Tory said as the girls prepared to fight again.

"Yes, sensei," Jesse replied and went to replace the staff he was using and grab a sword.

Returning to his spot and taking his stance, Jesse and the girls waited to start the next match. When Tory gave the signal, Cassandra and Rachel attacked first. Like their previous match, Jesse was left with no chance to retaliate, but he soon went on an offensive. Though it was a two on one fight, it soon became clear that Jesse was the better fighter. Not long after the fight began, Jesse scored a deathblow on Rachel. She moved to the side as Jesse and Cassandra continued the fight. Though Jesse tried to go for a quick victory, he found Cassandra to be a much tougher opponent than he initially expected. She was able to defend against Jesse's attacks and able to retaliate and counter as well. The two of them went back and forth for a while before finally ending with Jesse's sword at her throat and Cassandra's at his chest.

"Looks like I win," Jesse said with a smile.

"Don't you mean a draw?" Cassandra asked.

"The wound you would inflict, while serious, isn't lethal."

"He is right, Cassandra. Jesse claims victory," Tory said.

"How is my attack not lethal?" Cassandra asked as they separated.

"You blade would have passed between the heart and lungs without hitting either one. Which, like he said, is a serious but not lethal injury," Tory explained.

"But with a simple twist I could damage both of them," Cassandra argued.

"True, however, you wouldn't have a chance to since his attack would have beheaded you," Tory said.

Cassandra knew that he was right, but still looked upset over it.

"For what it's worth, you fought better than I expected. You might be better than even you think in weaponry," Jesse said.

"Thank you," Cassandra said smiling.

After Jesse, Cassandra and Rachel returned to their spots, Tory paired everyone up for their sparring session, with Jesse and Cassandra paired because of their match.


	3. Chapter 3

After all the students arrived at the practice field for magic, Tory stood up and waited until everyone was ready to begin.

"Jesse a thought occurred to me yesterday," he began. "I had you demonstrate you abilities with magic, but I didn't have you show me what your elemental affinity is. Would you mind showing us?"

"Not at all," Jesse replied and stepped forward to face the target.

Taking a deep breath, Jesse closed his eyes and focused. It wasn't long before lightning started to arc around his body. Raising his arm, he focused the lightning into his hand and with a quick motion, fired it as a single bolt.

"Now why is it that you launched the attack from just your first two fingers like that?" Tory asked

"I believe I mentioned that I wasn't that powerful with magic right?"

"Yeah, I remember that."

"Well, when I would practice in my spare time, I came to understand something about the way we were taught about using lightning."

"What was it that you realized?"

"That firing it from an open palm isn't as devastating against a single opponent even though it's more difficult to dodge, but makes a better attack against multiple opponents. However, if you condense the same amount of energy into a single bolt, you can make the attack more devastating when faced with a single opponent."

"So you have a stronger attack without using more energy. I must say, I have to agree with the elders about your use of magic. You may return to your place, Jesse."

With a short bow, Jesse returned to his place in line and waited. Tory divided the students into pairs and gave them their task for the day. While he watched them practice, he mulled over what Jesse had said and everything else that since meeting him. Tory found himself watching Jesse intently. As he watched, he noticed that Jesse seemed to find ways to modify an attack that would increase its strength without adding more power to it. After a while, he decided to dismiss the class early. When the students left, he went to speak with the elders.

When he arrived, the elders were speaking with Dan. Dan noticed Tory standing at the entrance before the elders did and turned their attention to him.

"Welcome Tory, please come in. What brings you by today?" Richard, head of the elder council, asked him.

"It's about one of my students. In fact, it would be your former student Dan," Tory answered.

"He isn't in any kind of trouble is he?" Dan asked concerned.

"No, he isn't."

"Then what, may I ask, is your reason for visiting about him?" Richard asked.

"In the past few days, I've witnessed what Dan told me your reasoning for his advancement. His skills with weaponry are far greater than I anticipated, especially when he wields a sword," Tory replied. "His magical strength seems about average, but it seems he can alter how he launches the attack so that it can increase the damage it does without adding power to it."

"That is very interesting," Richard said thoughtfully.

"If you don't mind me asking, what is the purpose of this visit, other than to inform us of a student's abilities?" asked Marcus.

"I think he might be ready for his test," Tory answered. "His swordsmanship is far above what would be necessary. I would say he could probably hold his own against a B class demon. With your permission, I would like to begin preparing him for his test and advancement."

"So you think that because of the way he uses magic compensate for his lack of strength, that he is ready to become a full slayer?" Richard asked.

"That's correct."

"This is a matter we will have to discuss. In the meantime, continue his studies as usual until you hear otherwise from us," Marcus said.

"Very well," Tory said with a bow before turning to leave.

"I believe I'll go so you can discuss this then," Dan said as he turned to leave as well.

"Do you really think Tory's right and Jesse is ready to become a full-fledged slayer?" Marcus asked the others.

"I don't know. I think it would be best for us to observe him and see for ourselves just what he can do," Richard replied first.

"Shall we all watch him or just one or two?" Alexander asked.

"I think one or two should suffice, especially if we decide to watch him in person."

"I think we should wait before deciding whether or not to give Tory the go ahead to begin his preparation," Vincent advised. "This way, we can avoid appearing to favor the young man."

"I would have to agree with Vincent on that," Gabriel said.

"That would be best," Richard agreed.

"Especially since we allowed his advancement to a higher level class only a few days ago," Marcus added. "But just how long shall we wait and observe him?"

"One month should be long enough," Alexander said. "This way he can have time to try and strengthen his magical ability as well."

"Very well, One month it is. Shall we adjourn this meeting then?" Richard asked after a moment.

With a nod of each of the others, they each left their meeting room and went their separate ways. But each of them now had something to really consider. They each knew that there had to more to Jesse than what his teachers had seen.


	4. Chapter 4

With their sensei ending class early, Jesse decided to go to his favorite place and meditate for a while. Walking into the garden in the center of their compound, he headed towards the stream that ran through it. After sitting down, he let his eyes close and let his mind empty out as he also began channeling lightning through his body as well. As he got deeper into his meditation, the lightning he was channeling through his body started to slow down. As Jesse was meditating, he heard someone approaching. As he listened, he realized it was more than one person. Altogether he heard what sounded like at least four approaching the garden. After a few moments he recognized one of the voices.

As Cassandra and her friends entered the garden, they noticed Jesse sitting by the stream. Some of her friends began talking about him quietly. Soon, their talk became snickers and giggles.

"What do you say we have a little fun?" one of them said suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Cassandra asked.

"Watch this," her friend said as she picked up a small stone.

Before anyone could say anything, she threw the stone at Jesse. Even though he was deep in meditation, he had been listening to them and knew something was coming. Without breaking his concentration and coming out of his meditation, he created a shield to block the stone.

For a few minutes everyone threw small rocks or twigs at him, everyone but Cassandra. After a few moments she made them stop.

"Why do you want us to stop?" her friend asked. "He made you look like a fool in front of everyone."

"You mean because he was able to outsmart me with magic?" Cassandra asked in return.

"Yes, you are the strongest in our class when it comes to magic. He shouldn't have been able to beat you like that."

"Just because he was able to win doesn't mean we have to make his life miserable."

"Why are you defending him? Got a crush on him or something?"

"What? No, of course I don't."

While they were talking Jesse decided it was time to head back to his room. He came out of his meditation, slowing dispelling the lightning he had circulating through his body. When he had dispelled all of it, he took a deep breath and came fully out of meditation and stood up. He took a moment to stretch before heading out.

"Running away are you?" he heard someone yell at him while he was headed to the opposite exit.

"I don't run," he called back over his shoulder.

"Looks like it to me," Cassandra's friend called back.

Jesse stopped walking and turned to face them. Before anyone could say anything else, she launched a fireball at him. Even though they can use magic anywhere outside of the dojos, it was restricted. When the fireball reached him, Jesse simply caught it and threw it back. A short match began between them. After a few exchanges, Jesse redirected the fire attack thrown at him into the stream causing a cloud of steam to arise. When the steam cleared, Jesse was gone. Even though they glanced around to look for him, Cassandra and her friends knew he wasn't anywhere within the garden.

Having watched the whole thing from the tower window, Richard had to admit to himself that Jesse's abilities were definitely above average, even if magically his strength wasn't. As everything he saw was replaying in his mind, Richard had a sudden realization. Jesse's abilities reminded him of someone and he started walking the halls while he was trying to figure out who it was. During his aimless wandering of the halls, Richard found himself in front of the armory. He went in and just looked around, letting his mind wander back to when he made his advancement to a full Demon Slayer. When his eyes fell on a sword set on a pedestal beside two other weapons, he knew who Jesse reminded him of.

Though he had died long ago, the sword, the Dragon's Fang belonged to one of the originators of the line of Slayers. It was him, along with some of his fellow warriors who first learned the elemental magic that they all used and founded the Slayers. Since then, many were trained and some were born into it. His sword, along with a few other weapons, was specially made to defeat demons. Many of the weapons they used now were derived from those but they aren't nearly as unique. The weapons the originators used were made from the bones and scales of a demonic dragon they had defeated, which also gave rise to the Dragon level of magic, signified by the front of element taking the shape of a dragon's head.

As Richard stared at the sword, he knew why Jesse reminded him of that particular Slayer. According to what the Elders knew, that Slayer had been much the same as Jesse. He hadn't been powerful in magic but had ways to compensate for that through his use of it and was quite skilled when it came to the sword. Richard had to admit to himself that Jesse just might be ready for his advancement. As he was walking out, he took one last look at the Dragon's Fang sword and wondered if it might have a wielder again.

The knock on the door drew his attention. When Jesse got out of bed to answer, he was surprised to see it was Cassandra. For a moment, neither of them said anything.

"How are you doing?" Cassandra asked.

"Alright, I guess," Jesse replied simply.

"Look, I wanted to apologize for the way my friends acted."

"It's alright. I've already put the whole thing behind me."

"That's good. They can be childish at times," Cassandra said relieved.

"I've stopped letting stuff like that bother me a while ago," Jesse replied.

"Ok, I guess I'll see you in class tomorrow then."

"Think we'll be paired up to spar again?"

"I don't know. Does it matter?"

"Not really, I was just curious. Besides, like I said the other day, you're probably better with weaponry than you realize."

"And you have a strength in magic that I have trouble keeping up with," Cassandra countered.

"I'm nowhere near your strength with magic."

"No, but that's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?" Jesse asked confused.

"You can enhance your own abilities and have ways of increasing the amount of damage you can do with magic without expending more energy to do so," Cassandra explained. "You seem to have an easier time using your opponent's attack against them, either by using it to strengthen yourself or catching and returning it. You're innovative with your use of magic. That's where I have trouble keeping up."

"I could probably help you with that if you want," Jesse replied. "That and help you with weaponry."

"And I could help build strength magically," Cassandra said with a slight smile.

Jesse gave a little chuckle from her response. The silence stretched between them for a few moments. Cassandra suddenly had a look like something had just crossed her mind.

"Come with me," she said suddenly after a few attempts at trying to say something before turning and heading off. After a hesitant moment, Jesse ran after her.

"And just where are we going?" he asked when he caught up to her.

"You'll see soon enough," she replied with a sly smile.

They walked in silence until they reached their destination. Cassandra had led them to one of the rooms set aside for students to practice magic unrestricted, but the healers will be alerted if someone is seriously injured.

"So you planned on starting tonight then?" Jesse asked when they arrived.

"Can you think of a reason not to?" she countered.

"I guess not," he answered.

"So just how do you intend to teach me?"

"Like this," Jesse replied as he launched a fire attack at her.

Cassandra caught the attack and sent it back at him. Jesse caught it and reduced it to a small ball. He tossed from hand to hand for a moment before throwing it at her. When she went to catch it, Jesse made it form a ring around her. Cassandra was just able to get a shield up in time before it closed on her. When the fire dissipated, she glared at him but held off retaliating.

"Is that what you meant?" Jesse asked with a laugh.

"Yes it is actually," Cassandra replied after a moment.

"Really it's just throwing something at your opponent that they wouldn't expect and catching them off guard."

"You make it sound so simple," she countered.

"Yeah it sounds easy, but trying it is difficult, especially if your opponent is expecting any kind of attack."

"So I would have a harder time trying it against you since you use that strategy?"

"Exactly, but where you have an advantage is that you're stronger in magic than me. If you know you can overpower your opponent it doesn't matter if they see it coming or not."

Cassandra launched a water attack at Jesse. He caught it and started to send it back. Before he could, Cassandra copied what he did with the fire and formed a ring around him. Jesse's quick reflexes helped to avoid being hit at the last moment. It was soon was going back and forth between them. Even though Cassandra was getting better with her attacks, Jesse was still quicker. Even when she started using multiple elements, Jesse seemed to be one step ahead of her. After a while, they stopped, both of them breathing heavily.

"I see why you were meditating now," Cassandra said after catching her breath. "You seem a bit stronger than before."

"That's why I have been," Jesse replied. "It may not be much but I'll take every little increase in strength I can get."

"I can understand that. So about helping me in weaponry?"

"Why don't we save that for tomorrow since that's where we're going to be for class anyway?"

"Works for me," Cassandra said. "Let's call it a night then, it's getting late."

With that, they left the room. They walked back to Jesse's room, chatting while they walked.

"So I guess I'll see you in class tomorrow," Jesse said when they arrived.

"Yeah, but we should do this again sometime," Cassandra replied.

"Helping each other or hanging out?"

"Why can't it be both?"

"You got me there," Jesse said with a laugh. "I'll see you tomorrow, good night."

"Good night."

Instead of going into his room right away, Jesse stood there watching Cassandra as she walked away. She looked back once and saw him staring at her. As she turned away, she started smiling. Shaking his head, Jesse went into his room and got ready for bed. As he laid down, he replayed his sparing match with Cassandra and drifted off to sleep, still smiling.


End file.
